


Falling Like the Fahrenheit

by icegirl99



Series: Outtakes and Other Random Two for Tragedy Extras [1]
Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Historical, Awkward Flirting, Awkwardness, Developing Relationship, Flirting, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pre-Relationship, RMS Titanic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:55:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25102771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icegirl99/pseuds/icegirl99
Summary: Do you think salvation waits for you?Papa Emeritus III meets a Catholic Cardinal on board the ill fated RMS Titanic during her maiden voyage. The two fall in love and then disaster strikes.A companion piece to my Two for Tragedy story told from the POV of Papa Emeritus III.
Relationships: Cardinal Copia/Papa Emeritus III
Series: Outtakes and Other Random Two for Tragedy Extras [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1771222
Comments: 9
Kudos: 20





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I've been thinking about doing this for a while and I did write one chapter from this and posted it a little while ago. It will be added here when the time comes for it. I'm also leaving it out as a stand alone piece (not deleting the original posting of I Want You). 
> 
> Credit for the title of this goes to the power metal band Kamelot.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't have nightmares of that fateful night. Laying half submerged in the icy waters of the North Atlantic ocean, the broken sides of the canvas lifeboat were the only things keeping us afloat. 

The sky above me was clear and dark, there was no moon in sight. But there were stars. A million tiny glowing lights. The beauty of it almost made me forget about the pain in my body. I was injured, dying, and oh so cold. The cold numbed my skin. One would think that I wouldn't be able to feel physical pain because of this. You would be wrong. My nerve endings burned everywhere the water touched. It was excruciating and some of the worst pain one could feel. 

Sometimes I can still feel that cold. The winters here in Sweden are bitter and frigid. Most often I am reminded of that night during particularly cold and windy nights in the dead of winter. It is during those times that I limit my time outside of my church. 

I don't let my family know that I still suffer from the emotional trauma as much as they do. Each of them having gone through the same tragedy as I, yet all of us experienced it differently. The love of my life, Andrea Copia, is plagued with nightmares of that horrible night and often needs my comfort in the middle of the night. It pains me to see him waking up and screaming my name. 

The night of April 14th, 1912 altered my life in a way I never thought possible. Although it tore many families and hearts apart, it brought mine together, completing my life and making me feel whole.


	2. London

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papa prepares to leave his hotel in downtown London for Southampton to board the Titanic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the delay.

April 10th, 1912

The late morning light shone through the window of my hotel room in downtown London. I was running late. My pocket watch read ten minutes to ten in the morning. The ship was to set sail at noon, barely more than two hours from now. Being late was nothing new to me, I wasn’t a morning person. But I always made sure to meet deadlines. Which is why I was now scrambling to collect my things and shove them into my suitcase. 

I had been in London for a couple of days. Arriving on the 9th from my home in Sweden. The journey had been a long one and I would have preferred to board the Titanic in France, making my trip not so long. My father had insisted otherwise, however, and told me that I had to meet with our sister church in London to make sure everything was in order before I took my month-long stay in America. 

I stuck the last few pieces of clothes that had been strewn around my room into the suitcase with the most room and clicked it shut. As I was straightening myself out in the bathroom mirror as best I could, I had spent my night in the company of another, but she had been gone by the time I had roused from my sleep, I heard a knocking at my door. 

On the other side of the door was a brother of sin, sent here from our sister congregation to ensure that I made it to the pier in Southampton on time. “Sorry to interrupt, Papa Emeritus,” the man said as I swung open the door. “But we must depart or you will miss the ship.” 

“I am aware, Bryan,” I said as I ushered him inside to help grab my baggage to take down to the car. “Come, get my luggage, please.” He nodded and went over to my suitcases, picking up two of them. 

“I’ll be right back, Papa,” Bryan said as he hurried to the door.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” I said and picked up a couple of suitcases as well. “I am not my father, I will help you.” I closed the door behind me and walked down to the lobby. Bryan had parked the car at the entrance and I set my luggage on the sidewalk next to it. "I'm going to go check out." I handed him the key to my room. "Please see to it that this key gets returned to the front desk once all of my luggage has been brought down." 

The brother of sin nodded. "Of course." 

I turned and went back into the lobby as he put the suitcases that I had brought into the car. "Hello," I flashed the receptionist a cheeky smile and watched her blush. I had always had that effect on women, and some men as well. Most people when they got to know me would often wonder why I wasn't married. It was considered improper for a man of my age, 42, to still be single. "I'd like to check out please." 

"Yes, sir," she replied and opened up her book. "Name and room number, please?" 

"Alessandro Emeritus and it was room 22." 

"Thank you, that will be four pound," she smiled back at me and I nodded, reaching into my pocket to pull out the cash. I handed it to her, along with a tip. 

"My driver will return the key to you momentarily," I replied. She nodded. 

"Thank you, sir." 

"Have a good day, miss." I nodded and turned to head back out to the car. 

Bryan was loading the final few suitcases into the trunk. “Everything set to go?” he asked me as I went around to the side of the car. 

“I believe so,” I replied as he opened the door for me. I climbed in and sat down. It was warm and stuffy inside so I rolled down the window. “Remember to return my key to reception, yes?” 

“Yes, Papa Emeritus.” 

I waited for a few more minutes before Bryan got into the front of the car and pulled into the street. “Is this your first time to America?” he glanced back at me. 

“No, it is not,” I said. “I have been to America a few times, and likely will be back a few more before my retirement.” I had no idea at the time what fate awaited me on the Titanic, if I had to look back now at this comment, I would have said things differently. To this day, I still haven’t boarded another ship to take me back across the Atlantic to America and I don’t think I ever would. 

“Business or pleasure?” He smiled at me. 

“Business,” I answered. “I travel for pleasure as well, but I mostly keep those trips closer to home. Within Europe.”

“I see,” Bryan said with a nod. “I suppose your father sends you over there to help build the higher ranking clergy membership with new congregations.”

“He does,” I agreed.

I stared out the window as we drove through the city and out into the countryside. My thoughts drifted back to the argument I had had with my father the day before I had left for London. We had never really gotten along, he had always kept himself busy with church business. Using it as an excuse not to help my mother care for me. Perhaps it was just my own opinion, but I often thought that he wanted nothing to do with fatherhood. Wanting sons just for the purpose of carrying on his name and the leadership of the church. 

My suspicions were confirmed when he told me that upon my return to Sweden that I would be put into an arranged marriage. You’d think this wouldn’t have bothered me. Most marriages among high-class men and women were arranged by their parents. Sometimes long before the parties of the marriage reached adulthood. But I was opposed to this practice. I do not believe that one should be forced into a marriage with one that they do not love. My father should have been one to believe in this as well since I knew that he loved my mother and had before they married. 

Unfortunately, I had not had much luck in finding love for myself. It wasn’t because there was a lack of women lining up to court me. It was because I found myself more interested in the same sex. I had never felt a romantic attachment to a woman before, but there had been a few men. Society shunned us though, those of us who didn’t conform to the idea that men and women were meant to be together and that men who liked men were shunned upon and considered sinners. I knew that were women out there too who loved other women, and that they experienced the same oppression from society. 

I blamed the Catholic church and their idea that unless you loved someone of the opposite sex, you were damned to hell. While my church, the Church of Satan, taught our congregation members that is a person you fall in love with, not a gender, many still shunned us. 

It was my ego and arrogance that eventually got me recognized in high society. I fought for many years to be who I wanted to be, and not someone molded by what society expected of me. Some people embraced this side of me, others hated me for it. 

My parents had never judged me for my sexuality, but they did push me for a biological heir. If I truly wanted to be with a man, this was impossible. At my age, I was running out of time and would have to impregnate a much younger woman. I assumed that my father would find a young sister of sin who had been lusting after me. It wouldn’t be hard. I knew I was attractive and I didn’t try to hide it. After all, vanity was important to me. I was used to being the center of attention. I had grown up as the youngest son of the founder of the church. I was always in the spotlight somehow, and I had grown to love it. But finding me a mate who could handle this side of me, would be much harder. Most young women were timid and shy. 

My brother had done well for himself, Antonio had found a wife who was able to live up to that role, and she was a much-respected member of society. Her name is Kate, and she was the high Priestess of the church here in London. They had met back when Antonio was helping build the clergy in London. They had a son together a few years ago, Arthur. He is my only nephew even though I have another brother.

My oldest brother, Adalberto, I haven’t seen in many years. He moved away after retiring from Papa status. I do not know if he ever married or had any children. 

It was difficult for me to see things from my father’s perspective but I know now, more than ever, that life can change quite quickly for the worse, and that disaster could strike at any moment. Forever altering life as you know it. That is why I decided to give myself one last chance at finding love. I just hoped that I would find that love on my trip across the frigid Atlantic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think that this will end up having the same amount of chapters as Two for Tragedy, so just be aware of that if you're thinking it will.


	3. My Ship of Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papa arrives in Southampton and boards the Titanic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters are going up at once because I already posted the third chapter a while back, just as a standalone fic.

April 10th, 1912

The drive to Southampton was quiet, thankfully there wasn’t much traffic on the roads until we got close to the pier. I knew it would be crowded, but not this bad. “Get me as close as possible, Bryan,” I called to him as I scanned the crowd with a scowl. Normally I was a very social person and thrived off people. Not today, I wasn’t exactly in the right mood for it. The ride had been long and I was tired, and hungry. Perhaps I could have a steward bring me something to eat once I got to my suite. 

“Of course, Papa.” I sat quietly while I waited for him to make his way through the crowds with the car. He was able to get fairly close to the first class gangways so I was thankful for that. Bryan parked the car and opened my door for me. 

I climbed out and looked up at the large ship, sitting a few hundred feet away from me in the water. It certainly was the largest I had seen and I had seen many passenger liners before. I just hoped that it would hold up to its name as being the most luxurious of the ocean liners as well. From the exterior, you could tell that it was brand new. The paint was pristine. 

There were already people lining the deck along the railing to look down at the pier or perhaps at loved ones to say goodbye before they began their journey to America. Most appeared to be first class travellers. I knew that steerage would gain more passengers once we arrived in Ireland.

“Your bags, Papa Emeritus?” I was pulled from my thoughts. 

“Uh follow me,” I said, and led him over to the officer at the front gangway. I assumed that because I held a ticket for one of only four of the first class parlor suites, that I would have priority for boarding purposes and that I could skip the line. 

I approached the officer. “Sir, I’m sorry but you’re going to have to wait in line,” the officer addressed me.

I sighed and reached into my pocket, I really didn’t want to stand out here. It was rather warm for an early April afternoon in London and I wasn’t dressed for the weather. “I hold a ticket to one of the first class parlor suites, does that not mean that I get priority boarding?” I pulled out my ticket and my wallet. I showed him the ticket and the wad of cash in my wallet. Perhaps a little persuasion with some cash would help. 

He stared at me, blinking. I smiled. “Yes, of course,” the man said. “Right this way, Mr Emeritus. My apologies.” 

“Are you not able to tell from my dress that I am the wealthiest passenger?” I raised an eyebrow as we walked over to the gangway. 

“Wealthy, yes,” the officer replied, “but not the wealthiest on this liner. That would be Mr Astor.”

“Ah yes,” I said trying to place the name. I’m not sure I knew the man directly but I had heard of the family name.. “Astor, I’m assuming he is affiliated with the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York?” 

“That is correct,” he said. I nodded, feigning interest. I didn’t care how rich the other passengers were. All I cared about right now was getting on this ship and going to my room to rest. “Here you are.”

“Thank you,” I said with a nod. “Is my driver allowed to accompany me on board to handle my luggage?”

“I am sorry, Mr Emeritus but we do not allow non passengers aboard. But you are welcome to have one of our stewards handle your luggage for you.” 

I turned to Bryan. “Well I suppose this is where our journey ends, Brother Bryan, I appreciate all your help today.” 

“It was a pleasure to assist you, Papa Emeritus,” Bryan said. A couple of stewards appeared beside him and he passed off my luggage to them. I pulled some cash out of my wallet and handed it to Bryan as another thank you tip. 

“Where do we bring these, sir?” One of the stewards addressed me. 

“Suite B52,” I said as I started up the gangway ramp. I met the officer at the top and showed him my ticket. He found another steward to take me to my cabin. 

As I walked through the hallways, I found the ship to be rather boring. But I knew this wasn’t all of it, just the decks where the cabins were. They reminded me of the simple hallways of luxury hotels, clean and pristine. 

We had entered on C deck, which was one deck below mine. Eventually the hallway ended and we came through a door to the grand staircase. Now this was what my ticket had paid for. I looked around at the perfectly carved wood railings, the designs carefully cut into the wood. The finish on it shone in the natural light, coming through the large glass dome, three decks above me. 

Once I had climbed the one flight of stairs, I was taken down another hallway, this one was wider and less plain looking. The walls were covered in French panels. “Here you are sir, B52,” the steward handed me a key. “You will find the purser on D deck should you require their services. I see that you have also paid extra for the restaurant, it is at the end of the hallway.” He pointed down to my right. I nodded and handed him a small tip. “The others should arrive shortly with your luggage.” 

“Thank you.” When he had left, I unlocked the door and stepped into my suite. It opened directly into the sitting room. The space was large, much larger than I had expected and more luxurious than any sitting room on a ship I had ever seen. The walls were wood-paneled but stained a dark cherry color. They were adorned in gold trim. The light fixtures were gold and set on each wall with three lights each, the shades a white crystal much like those found throughout the rest of the ship. The floor was covered in a cream-colored carpet, decorated with colorful flowers. The furniture; one couch, two loveseats, and three chairs were upholstered in the same fabric as the carpet. In the corner of the room was a writing table with stationary carrying the ship’s name. There was a fireplace off to the right of me that wasn’t lit at the moment. I had a feeling that it wasn’t a real fireplace. I knew that no other ships had fireplaces in private cabins so it was extremely unlikely that this one was wood burning, since it would require extra ventilation. I did see that it had a switch though, so it must have been electric. I went over to examine it more closely. It was framed in light oak, above it hung a round mirror trimmed in the same gold that embellished the walls. A small wooden clock sat on the mantle. I turned then to look out my windows, they were closed but the white curtains were pulled back, allowing in the sunlight from outside. I opened one of them to let in some of the warm breeze. 

There was a soft knock at my door. I assumed it was the stewards here with my luggage so I went and opened it. I had assumed correctly. “Just put them in in the bedroom,” I said, stepping aside so that they could enter the suite. 

The bedroom looked quite similar to the sitting room in it’s decor. There were two beds, one was slightly smaller than the other, most likely for children. The bedding was clean and crisp and as my exhaustion caught up to me, I thought about laying down for a while. It certainly seemed like a good idea at the time. 

“Are you travelling alone?” The steward closest to me asked.

“Unfortunately,” I sighed. “Why do you ask?” I had the choice to bring along a Ghoul with me but I had declined. My closest Ghoul was Omega and him and I hadn’t been on good terms recently. Not after he had professed his love for me and I had turned him down. I did love that Ghoul, but not in the way he loved me. I wanted to bring him along for the company but I knew things would become complicated between us during the voyage, and I couldn’t put him through that. Perhaps after my month away, he and I could work together again upon my return to Sweden.

“If you have a need for another bedroom, there is one through that door.” He pointed off to another door near me. I nodded. “Anyway, that is everything, I believe. Enjoy your voyage.” 

“Thank you, sir,” I replied, letting them out of the suite.

I closed the door and pulled out my pocket watch. I knew that I could catch lunch in the dining room but I was tired and that seemed to outweigh my hunger. I could wait until dinner. I decided to lay down in the large bed, not bothering to remove my clothes.

I didn’t know if I could sleep, but I would try. My mind kept wandering however, to how much I missed Omega. I needed to find myself a travelling companion. That would be hard though as most of the passengers on this ship were married. It would prove to be a long and lonely voyage otherwise. Maybe I could find a clergy member to entice...

I sighed and closed my eyes, staying like this for several minutes, listening to the bustle of passengers outside of my door. Choosing a time like to rest had been a bad idea. Perhaps the boat deck would provide some relief from both my exhaustion and loneliness.

It only took me a few seconds to get out of bed. I quickly straightened myself out in the dressing table in the mirror and left my cabin to head up to the boat deck. Little did I know, at the time of exiting my suite, that I was about to meet the man who would forever change my life. A lot of people knew nothing but tragedy and sorrow on this maiden voyage of the ship of dreams. Many who boarded the ship, if asked again, would have said no to the fateful trip across the Atlantic. But if you asked me, I would have said yes, a million times, for it most certainly was my ship of dreams.


	4. I Want You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papa meets a Catholic Cardinal on the boat deck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes this is posted separately as well. I won't take down the standalone one.

The boat deck was crowded, as I had suspected. Everyone was packed against the railings on the port side of the ship. I watched from a distance, but not actually being able to see anything that was happening below in the water. From the gasps of the crowd, it was clear to me that something exciting was happening. Or something disastrous. I could hear the familiar sound of the Titanic’s engines down below, and the gurgling from the shallow waters. A few seconds later and the sudden loud snaps of mooring ropes being broken filled the air.

I was curious as to what was going on so I moved closer to the railing. I did not push for a spot, instead, staying back so that I could just see two smaller ships slowly being pulled towards the Titanic. Another moment and a second loud sound filled the air, the boarding ramp to the second ship fell into the water. A small sigh escaped my lips. This was not good, but I knew that the Captain of our ship was a well-seasoned sailor. The potential disaster could still be avoided.

As I watched the ships work together to stop the collision, I also scanned the crowd before me. This trip would be a long one for me to spend by myself and I could not help but look for a potential bedroom companion. There were many young women, and given my ability to charm them senseless, I could easily get any of them that I wanted. But that wasn’t what I was interested in. My gaze fell upon a Catholic Cardinal, who was gripping the railing so tightly that his knuckles had gone white. I stared, admiring his slim frame that the red robes hid a little too well, as a smile crossed my lips. I could only see half of his face, the concern was evident on his surprisingly beautiful features. His light brown hair was speckled with grey, and I knew he would be around my age. Old enough that it may prove to be a challenge to get him into my bed. But I was Papa Emeritus the Third and I was never one to shy away from a challenge, especially for a prize such as this. The poor man was in his 40s and had likely never known such pleasures of the flesh, for his God called it a sin. And a sin, it was. Lust was the one I was known to indulge in most, singing praises to my Master below as I did so.

“Lucifer, let me have this one,” I whispered as I took a step forward to touch the man.

Suddenly he turned and walked straight into me. He wasn’t steady on his feet and appeared to be highly clumsy. Instinctively I reached out and steadied him so that he wouldn’t fall over and hurt himself. “I’m sorry,” the Cardinal muttered quietly, not looking up at me.

I smiled, laughing lightly. So he was a shy one. Even better. I certainly loved a challenge. He looked up at me and his lovely green eyes locked onto mine. I watched as a look of delightful confusion came over his face. My smile widened. This man had no idea what had hit him and he was searching his wrecked brain for an answer as to who, or what, I was. He knew. My Cardinal had always known who I was. He just couldn’t bring himself to admit it.

I could see what I was doing to him. My grip tightened slightly on his shoulders and he blushed, a deep pink color. His beautiful cheeks were turning a delightful color for me as his mouth fell open in surprise. I had him right where I wanted him. His heart was racing and he looked like he was panicking, but I saw through him. He was nervous, but it was because he wasn’t aware of what was happening to his body. So he was attracted to me. What a delightful thing to see. “I’m sorry,” he repeated again in a rush. “Excuse me.” He closed his mouth and tried to get out of my grip. I just held him there and he looked up at me with wide eyes.

“Forgive me,” I said with a smile, laying on the charm. My voice was smooth, seductive. “My apologies, Cardinal. I did not mean to embarrass you.”

I didn’t think it was possible for him to blush deeper, but he did. I kept the smile on my face as I felt arousal start to stir within me. I wanted him. I would find a way to break this anxiety of his. The Catholic church had a long history of trying and failing to quell the desires of their clergy members. This gorgeous man was wasted in a life of celibacy. He deserved to know the exquisite pleasures that I could bring him, and in return, him to me.

“My fault,” he said, attempting to give me a smile. The poor man was so shy. “Um…” he continued, his eyes still locked onto mine. “How did you know I was a Cardinal?”

I laughed, deeply, drawing the sound out to the point where I almost certain I had made the man whimper. He was so tightly wound up that he had forgotten what he was wearing. I moved my hand from his shoulder, caressing the red fabric with my gloves. I watched his breath hitch. “Are these robes not yours?” I flashed him a cheeky smile.

“Oh, um...Yes, they are,” He jerked his head awkwardly, now chewing on his lip. It was oddly endearing.

I dropped one of my hands from his shoulder and held it out to him. “Where are my manners?” I smirked. “I am Papa Emeritus the Third.” I watched as realization dawned on the face that I was already so in love with.

The Cardinal swallowed and tore his gaze from mine finally. “Cardinal Copia,” he replied, refusing to look up again.

“Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Cardinal Copia.” I gripped his hand tight, giving it a reassuring squeeze. I dropped my hand then and removed my other hand from his shoulder.

“Likewise,” he said, taking in a breath. It was shaky and I could tell that he was wanting to get away. “I-I um-I have to go,” he said quickly and turned, running off. I let him go with a smug smile on my face. I had my way in. I just had to play the game long enough to get him to see that there was a better place on this earth for him that wasn’t just a boring old Catholic church. That place was in my heart and in my bed.

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully I can provide you with regular updates to this.


End file.
